. (Metal.) A process (invented about 1899 by Frederick W. Taylor and Maunsel B. White) for giving toughness to self-hardening steels. The steel is heated almost to fusion, cooled to a temperature of from 700° to 850° C. in molten lead, further cooled in oil, reheated to between 370° and 670° C., and cooled in air. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ From the native name. ] (Zool.) A South American carnivore (Galera barbara) allied to the grison. The tail is long and thick. The length, including the tail, is about three feet. [ Written also taira. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Med.) A rare hereditary disease affecting lipid metabolism in humans, due to a deficiency of hexosaminidase. It occurs in infants and children, and causes death before the onset of adulthood. It occurs most commonly of people of Jewish origin from easter Europe. It is characterized by accumulation of lipids in nervous tissue, causes a red spot on the retina, and eventual blindness and paralysis before death. [ PJC ]